Local World War II Airman Interred In Sewickley Cemetery
SEWICKLEY (KDKA) -- A solemn, but patriotic tribute to a military hero this Memorial Day weekend.
Mitchell Higginbotham was one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen. Saturday, he was laid to rest at Sewickley Cemetery.
Inside a casket draped with the American flag lies a war hero, whose contributions to the U.S. military are legendary, whose bravery is celebrated in his hometown of Sewickley.
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Higginbotham was a proud member of the Tuskegee Airmen, the squadron of African-American fighter pilots in World War II.
"He was one of the seven airmen from the borough of Sewickley who became Tuskegee Airmen and who flew in combat in the service of their country," retired Judge Livingstone Johnson said.
"Mitchell, my brother, was always an intelligent, hard-working, dedicated individual to becoming successful and to carry the name of the United States with glory," Mitchell's brother Robert Higginbotham said.
Higginbotham was honored as a patriot who blazed a path toward full integration of the U.S. Armed Forces.
"I remember when I was growing up, there was no mention of Tuskegee Airmen or anything in the history books I learned in school, but my father made certain that we understood the history and he said, 'Robert and Mitchell are living examples of what Tuskegee Airmen are,'" family friend Pamela Butler said.
They pledge to honor Mitchell Higginbotham's legacy.
Lt. Higginbotham was 94 years old.